Pan's Labyrinth

Pan's Labyrinth is a film I've been anticipating for a long time, especially being a big fan of Guillermo del Toro's The Devil's Backbone. It does have a similar feel to that movie, but while it's got more of a fantasy element to it, it's much darker, too. I've heard this film described as a fairy tail for adults and I think that's an appropriate description. Under the surface there's much more going on, but you're seeing it through the eyes of a child, who creates her own fantasy to escape a very harsh reality. It's a haunting film.

During 1944, Ofelia travels with her pregnant mother to a remote location to meet up with her new father Capitan Vidal, who is hunting the last remnants of rebels. Her real father died during the war. Ofelia likes stories and fairy tales. A maze not far from her new home is inviting as an escape. It is there she meets a creature who thinks she contains the soul of a lost princess of a hidden kingdom underground. She only has to prove herself with three tasks, when she can return and become a princess forever. Her tasks provide escape from the sadistic Capitan Vidal, who is the real monster.